The Urbanist — "How citizens stay informed: why strong city journalism matters"

Episode date: July 31, 2025
Host: Andrew Tuck (Monocle)
Focus: Exploring the role and necessity of robust, locally rooted city journalism in keeping residents informed, connected, and able to navigate complex urban environments. The episode dives into innovative newsrooms and publications in New York and Lisbon, and an in-depth podcast series examining how modern housing affects public health.

Main Theme & Purpose

This episode of The Urbanist interrogates why vibrant, informed cities require journalism that truly connects with—and listens to—their communities. Through diverse case studies spanning immigrant-centric newsrooms in New York (Documented), a people-focused publication in Lisbon (A Mensagem de Lisboa), and an investigative podcast on the health impacts of high-density housing, the episode explores how media can bridge social divides, empower marginalised groups, and foster urban wellbeing.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Documented: Serving New York's Immigrant Communities

Guest: Mazen Sid Ahmed, Co-Executive Director

Mission & Rationale (01:46–06:03)

• Documented is a nonprofit newsroom focused on covering New York City’s immigrants for the immigrants themselves—not just about them.
• Founded in 2018 amidst the collapse of local news and an absence of local immigration coverage.
• Purposefully publishes in English, Spanish, Chinese, and Haitian Creole, and distributes news via WhatsApp, WeChat, and Nextdoor, meeting audiences where they are.
• Funding: Dependent on philanthropy and grants, echoing the public-good model of libraries and universities.

Building Trust & Relevance (06:20–08:55)

• Partnerships with media (NYT, Guardian, ProPublica), but focus remains on low-wage immigrants in NYC.
• Uses “information needs assessments” to truly listen to communities’ concerns and adapt delivery (e.g., WhatsApp newsletters in Spanish; WeChat in Chinese).
• Key findings:
  • Immigrants often depicted only as victims or criminals in media.
  • Communities crave practical, accessible info about navigating city life.
  • Informal networks (like WhatsApp groups) dominate news consumption.

Story Impact & Community Engagement (09:03–10:38)

• High-engagement content includes service journalism and practical guides (e.g., "Should I go to my immigration court hearing?").
• Investigative reporting driven by community-sourced concerns, e.g., exposing wrongful immigrant detentions and deportations.

Complex Politics within Communities (10:38–14:11)

• Significant portions of immigrant residents support Trump for economic, crime, and homelessness reasons—contrary to outsider assumptions.
• Documented strives to “lean into the complexity,” addressing community drivers like public safety concerns, even when the data contradicts widespread perceptions:

  "We're hoping to lead into the complexity and be a space for our communities to have these difficult conversations." (C, 13:47)

Current Priorities (14:19–15:23)

• Following up with first-time Trump voters on their experiences.
• Continuing to provide clear, practical explainers on changing immigration policy (e.g., DACA, TPS, birthright citizenship court cases).
• Ongoing stories about immigrants affected by the Alien Enemies Act.

2. Streets in the Sky: Public Health and Modern Housing

Guest: Jonathan Goodman, Social Scientist & Podcast Host

Origin & Focus (16:14–17:08)

• A podcast exploring the intersection of architecture, mental health, and public wellbeing, especially in tower block “streets in the sky.”
• Goodman’s interdisciplinary background (anthropology, public health, journalism) shapes the podcast’s broad lens.

Concept of 'Streets in the Sky' (17:08–17:41)

• Term refers to elevated walkways and corridors intended to replace traditional street-level social spaces in high-rise blocks.

Case Studies & Learnings (18:10–18:54)

• Examined South London estates like Doddington and Rollo, analyzing how demolition and replacement of street housing impacted loneliness, disease, and heat exposure over decades.

Blind Spots in Urban Design (19:26–19:50)

• Improvements (e.g., sanitation) were prioritized, but mental health, social connection, and the impact of losing traditional street life were neglected—issues only exacerbated by climate change.

Recommendations for Planners (20:13–21:16)

• Urban densification must account for both mental and physical well-being:
  • Provide community centers.
  • Acknowledge increased risk of infectious disease in dense towers.
• Consult residents meaningfully—recognizing differences even within demographics (e.g., older men vs. women’s voices in community engagement; 21:35–22:10).

Retrofitting & Small Interventions (23:11–23:59)

• Even modest enhancements—like reopening communal gardens—can improve residents’ well-being.
• Local “champion” programs that advocate for tenant needs can help mitigate the persisting health and social risks in established housing estates.

Podcast Reflections (24:12–24:24)

• Goodman expresses keen interest in expanding future episodes to broader issues of trust in urban society.

3. A Mensagem de Lisboa: Journalism for Connection & Belonging in Lisbon

Guest: Caterina Cavallo, Founder & Editor-in-Chief
Interviewer: Carlotta Rebelo (Monocle)

Genesis & Purpose (25:16–26:25)

• Born from a sense that Lisbon’s traditional and new residents lacked a “connector”—no media told their urban stories.
• Existing press covered only the city’s politicians or economy, not neighborhood life or ordinary people.

Embracing Diversity (27:09–29:18)

• A Mensagem publishes stories—and newsletters—in Creole and English, in addition to Portuguese, recognizing the city’s multicultural reality.
• The goal: Represent all Lisboetas, old and new, and adapt to evolving urban demographics.
• Different linguistic groups, including Cape Verdean and Guinean Creole speakers, and growing numbers of expats/digital nomads, are actively included.

Human-Centric Storytelling vs. Polarization (29:58–32:32)

• Responding to the political weaponization of immigration, A Mensagem counters with stories that nurture empathy:

  “We would like...to provoke empathy through knowledge...If they look the other people in the eyes, they would change their opinions.” (B, 30:04)

• Notable project: Publishing 12 chronicles by a homeless man, humanizing a stigmatized issue and shifting community attitudes.

The Power of Community Events (33:15–36:05)

• “Mensagem Live”: Monthly events where ordinary Lisboetas take the stage and share their own stories (not professional journalists).
• Examples range from inter-cultural love stories to guerrilla gardeners and metro musicians.
• The events build community, foster local trust, and show journalism can be more than words on paper—it can be lived and shared, creating hope and belonging:

  “So the hope on stage gave them hope on the public.” (B, 35:24)

• Strong audience engagement: “Nobody said no... even people that didn’t ever step on a stage.” (B, 35:56)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

On the Purpose of Local Journalism

• Caterina Cavallo:

  “Media should stop playing this blaming game and should put their feet on the ground and understand the societies and the communities that we live in.” (B, 32:24)

On Leaning Into Complexity

• Mazen Sid Ahmed:

  "We're hoping to lead into the complexity and be a space for our communities to have these difficult conversations." (C, 13:47)

On Urban Planning & Resident Wellbeing

• Jonathan Goodman:

  "You need an interdisciplinary team...sociologists, psychologists...not just going out on the street and asking people what kind of home you want, but focus groups and published interviews to get an understanding on a context by context basis what is going to work for the population at large." (E, 22:15)

Humanizing the Marginalized

• Caterina Cavallo:

  "We show the stories of people who struggle, we show the stories of people who also succeed. We show the stories of humanity...People said, we will never look at a homeless man, a homeless woman, the same way we did before." (B, 31:05)

On Adaptation and Connecting Diverse Residents

• Caterina Cavallo:

  "It's not one size fits all, not even in the media. The more diverse the city...the more you have to adapt to these kind of new communities." (B, 28:56)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• [01:46] Documented’s origin, mission, and funding (Mazen Sid Ahmed)
• [06:20] Listening to and reaching immigrant communities in NYC
• [09:03] Most-read stories and impact on immigrant readership
• [10:38] Political complexities of immigrant communities (Trump support, fear, and the nuances)
• [14:19] Current editorial focus at Documented
• [16:14] The genesis and goals of the Streets in the Sky podcast (Jonathan Goodman)
• [18:10] London estates as case studies for health and loneliness
• [20:13] How planners must account for more than just unit quantity
• [23:11] Retrofitting existing high-density housing for public health and wellbeing
• [25:16] A Mensagem de Lisboa’s founding principles (Caterina Cavallo)
• [27:09] Adapting to a multilingual, multicommunity Lisbon
• [29:58] Building empathy and countering polarization through storytelling
• [33:15] Community-building via “Mensagem Live” events

Conclusion

This episode of The Urbanist reveals local journalism as not just informational, but deeply participatory and transformative. Whether fighting misinformation and exclusion in New York, confronting the legacies and perils of urban housing, or telling Lisbon’s untold human stories, resilient city journalism is shown to be vital for trust, inclusion, and urban flourishing. The thread throughout is a commitment to listening, adapting, and putting people—not just profits or power centers—at the heart of the urban news ecosystem.